By FHSU Sports Information
Street and Smith’s College Football Yearbook and Lindy’s Sports College Football National Preview, released in the summer of 2018, have Fort Hays State football ranked No. 4 in their preseason polls for NCAA Division II. The Tigers are coming off their most successful season in program history, reaching the Super Region 3 Semifinals of the NCAA Playoffs in 2017 with an 11-1 overall record. The Tigers claimed their first MIAA Championship in the process, going undefeated in the regular season.
Fort Hays State went into the NCAA Playoffs last year ranked No. 4 in the nation, but finished at No. 8 in the final AFCA Division II Poll. The Tigers made the playoffs for the first time since the 1995. It was their third appearance in the Division II playoffs overall. Street and Smith’s and Lindy’s do not conduct polls for Division II throughout the year. The official preseason poll from the AFCA, along with the supplemental weekly poll from D2Football.com, will release at a later date, but Fort Hays State’s amazing run in 2017 definitely grabbed the attention of several national football information sources.
Ferris State, which knocked the Tigers out of the playoffs last year, sits at No. 3 in the Lindy’s Poll, but all the way down at No. 19 in the Street and Smith’s Poll. The first week of the season will feature a big match up in Hays when Central Missouri comes to town. The Mules are tabbed No. 10 in the Lindy’s Poll and No. 18 in the Street and Smith’s Poll. The Mules came to Hays last year in Week 2 of the season as the No. 13 ranked team in the nation by the AFCA. An unranked FHSU team at the time posted a convincing 35-6 win, grabbing the attention of the Division II football world. The Tigers jumped into the AFCA Top 25 Poll for the remainder of the year after that win, ascending all the way to No. 4 by regular season’s end. The run also included an MIAA Championship clinching win at defending national champion Northwest Missouri State by a score of 13-12 in Week 10. Northwest Missouri is among the top 10 in both magazine polls.
The Tigers return three of their eight 2017 All-America selections this year, which includes senior linebacker Jose Delgado, senior defensive back Doyin Jibowu, and junior punter Dante Brown. All three received All-America status from the Don Hansen Football Committee last year. Eleven of the 21 All-MIAA selections for FHSU from last year also return.
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2018-19 Fort Hays State Season Tickets
The Tigers play 6 times at home in 2018 starting with the season opener against Central Missouri on August 30.
2018 Fort Hays State Football Schedule
Below are the preseason polls from both magazines.
Lindy’s Sports College Football Preview – Division II Preseason Poll
1. West Florida
2. Indiana (Pa.)
3. Ferris State
4. Fort Hays State
5. Northwest Missouri State
6. Minnesota State
7. Texas A&M-Commerce
8. Midwestern State
9. West Alabama
10. Central Missouri
11. Central Washington
12. Indianapolis
13. Colorado State-Pueblo
14. California (Pa.)
15. Ashland
16. Valdosta State
17. Colorado School of Mines
18. Edinboro
19. Assumption
20. Carson-Newman
21. Humboldt State
22. Bowie State
23. Southwest Baptist
24. Hillsdale
25. Adams State
Street & Smith’s College Football Yearbook – Division II Preseason Poll
1. West Florida
2. Indiana (Pa.)
3. Minnesota State
4. Fort Hays State
5. Grand Valley State
6. Texas A&M-Commerce
7. Indianapolis
8. Harding
9. Northwest Missouri State
10. Midwestern State
11. Central Washington
12. Shepherd
13. Ashland
14. Colorado State-Pueblo
15. Sioux Falls
16. West Georgia
17. Assumption
18. Central Missouri
19. Ferris State
20. West Alabama
21. Findlay
22. Carson-Newman
23. Virginia State
24. Edinboro
25. Colorado School of Mines